In the drilling and completion industry, the formation of boreholes for the purpose of production or injection of fluid is common The boreholes are used for exploration or extraction of natural resources such as hydrocarbons, oil, gas, water, and alternatively for CO2 sequestration.
In order to operate to its full envelope rating, a packer typically must be set in cemented (supported) casing. In many wells, getting a good cement job on the casing string is difficult or unpredictable. Operators are requiring equipment ratings in both supported and unsupported casings for added assurance the packer will function within required parameters should they not be able to achieve a good cement job. In instances where the casing is not supported, testing and extensive finite element analysis (“FEA”) is required to determine the packer's rating. The FEA and subsequent validation testing is somewhat unpredictable due to inconsistencies in as-rolled casing. This forces safety factors to be applied to compensate for worst case scenarios.
The art would be receptive to alternative devices and methods for predicting packer performance.